WinInfo Short Takes, September 21, 2012

A report in Bloomberg says that European Union (EU) antitrust regulators are considering an investigation of Microsoft’s upcoming Windows RT, the ARM-based version of Windows 8. At issue, naturally, is the built-in web browser, Internet Explorer (IE) 10, and the fact that makers of competing browsers—like Google with Chrome and Mozilla with Firefox—cannot create native software applications on this platform. “We will need to look at this,” EU competition commissioner Joaquin Almunia told Bloomberg. Microsoft, in a statement, said that it had done nothing wrong in excluding competition in the new OS. “We’re confident that our updates to the Windows family of products—Windows 8, Windows RT, and Windows Phone—will offer customers additional choice in a very competitive market.” Which is fine. But the EU needs to be confident of this as well. It's right to be unconvinced.

US Senate Claims Microsoft, Others Avoided Taxes … Legally

A US Senate committee memo claims that Microsoft and other high tech firms used dubious but legal financial maneuvers to avoid paying billions in taxes over the past three years. Put another way, they did what all big companies do: maximized profits in every conceivable way while not actually breaking the law. I’m curious why this is even an issue, but here goes. The memo says that Microsoft made transactions with its subsidiaries in Bermuda, Ireland, Puerto Rico, and Singapore that helped it save $6.5 billion in taxes. Senator Carl Levin told Microsoft in a hearing that the moves “may be in your temporary interest as a corporation … and increase your profits and reduce your taxes.” To which I assume Microsoft replied, “Right. Are we done here?” (Actually, what it said was that it complied with US and international tax laws, which is true.) The issue isn’t really Microsoft—Senator Tom Coburn said the software giant utilized “properly legal tax avoidance”—or the other firms, but rather the laws themselves, which contain a ton of loopholes. Senators, this is why corporations hire lawyers.

Microsoft Scores Patent Victory Against Motorola in Germany

A German court ruled this week that Android-based devices made by Motorola Mobility do infringe on a Microsoft software patent and will need to be changed or face a sales injunction in that country. The ruling affects various smartphones and tablets, and involves a Microsoft patent related to alternative virtual keyboard layouts. Interrupted in the middle of a happy dance, Microsoft Deputy General Counsel David Howard said, “We’re pleased this decision builds on previous rulings in Germany that have already found that Motorola is broadly infringing Microsoft's intellectual property. We will continue to enforce injunctions against Motorola products in Germany and hope Motorola will join other Android device makers by taking a license to Microsoft's patented inventions.” It’s inconceivable that Google—which owns Motorola Mobility—would ever agree to such a thing, because the company’s business model basically involves giving away other firms’ intellectual property while hoping that regulators look the other way.

Samsung Scores Patent Victory Against Apple in Germany

I haven’t seen this much fighting in Germany since—well, never mind. But Samsung also scored a legal victory this week, this time against Apple, when a German court tossed out an Apple claim that Samsung infringed on its patents for touchscreen technologies. “Our products do not infringe Apple’s intellectual property,” a Samsung statement reads. “We will continue to further develop and introduce products that enhance the lives of German consumers.” In a bit of good news for Motorola Mobility and parent company Google, the same court also threw out Apple’s same patent claim against Motorola’s products.

Apple Users Can Expect to Be Lost a Lot in the Coming Weeks

Good thing no one had an iPhone 5 before they queued up in line to wait for the iPhone 5 to go on sale this morning. That’s because the iPhone 5 comes with Apple’s new Maps program, which is borderline unusable. All those poor Apple fans would never have found their local Apple Store! What they can do with Maps, however, is look at pretty but completely useless “fly-by” views of locations, which show what these places look like from a plane, at an angle. Which, as you know, is exactly what you need when you’re driving or walking. I’ve often argued that Apple is all about form over function, but Maps brings this silliness to a new, stupefying level. At least you’ll have something pretty to look at when you walk around, hopelessly lost. Which, when you think about it, is exactly how many iPhone users appear to others already.

iPhone Sets Another Record: $6 Billion in Repair Costs

Which is interesting, because I noticed two people with broken iPhone screens on the train ride home from New York this week. (I’ve never experienced a broken screen with various Windows Phone devices, and I drop these things all the time.) Consumer electronics protection plan provider SquareTrade released a study this week claiming that iPhone users in the United States alone have racked up almost $6 billion in screen-repair fees since the product’s launch in 2007. It seems you can crack the screen on the notoriously delicate device simply by looking at it the wrong way, and this leads me to wonder if a huge chunk of iPhone “sales” are in fact overly loyal customers buying second and third replacements for broken phones—a theory that would more than somewhat contradict Apple fans’ claims of design superiority. Actually, it’s not a theory: According to SquareTrade, a full 30 percent of iPhone owners damaged their precious devices just last year. I’m sure the taller iPhone 5 can beat that record, too.

Swiss Federal Railways Learns the Hard Way that Apple Has Never had an Original iDea

Apple doesn’t get enough credit for its ability to bald-facedly copy designs, pass them off as its own, and then get lauded for those designs by the unsuspecting public. The latest example is the Clock app in Apple’s iPad, which the Swiss clockmakers at Swiss Federal Railways think looks surprisingly similar—one might say identical—to the design of their iconic railway clock, which dates to the 1940s. The firm owns both a trademark and a copyright on the design and was curious how Apple arrived at such an identical design, so they’re suing. (Hint: Lazy Apple designers Googled “clock” and picked the prettiest one to copy. They’ve done it before.) The clock design is, however, widely licensed, so if Apple wants to pay to use it, it's certainly able to do so. No? Yeah, I didn’t think so.

From the "Kick ‘Em When They’re Down" Files: RIM Experiences Another Network Outage in Europe

Last October, Research In Motion's (RIM’s) proprietary BlackBerry email service went down for the count in Europe and the United States, a rare outage that left 10 million users without connectivity and the struggling firm looking more helpless than ever. This week, it happened again, and this time in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. RIM confirmed the outage and had things up and running again more quickly this time: In 2011, the outage last days, but this time it was just several hours. See? Things really are improving over at RIM.

Listen to Paul. No, Really Listen. Or Watch. Or Both!

I recorded What the Tech with Andrew Zarian on Tuesday and Windows Weekly with Leo Laporte and Mary Jo Foley on Thursday, both on the normal schedule, and we even had Microsoft Technical Fellow Mark Russinovich on Windows Weekly this week! Both podcast episodes should be available soon, on the web, and via iTunes, the Zune Marketplace, and wherever else quality podcasts are found. You can also find all of my podcast activities on the SuperSite for Windows.

The Paul Thurrott Mobile App: Is That a Paul in Your Pocket?

The Paul Thurrott: Pocket Tech app is now available for both the iPhone and Windows Phone, bringing all of my technical content to your favorite mobile device in a fun, on-the-go format. We'll have an Android version available soon as well, I'm told. And who knows? A Windows 8 app would make plenty of sense too. Download for Windows Phone - Download for iPhone

Mobile phones suffer water damage "mostly from people dropping their phones in a toilet.". Pissed myself laughing over that. Were they using it or did it just fall out of a pocket ? Whats next ? A waterproof version so you can talk in the shower. Do people really need to be that much in touch ?

With regards to phones.... I was pretty interested in grabbing a Lumia 920 when it comes out. But the new HTC's are really nice. I have an iPhone, and I have a Samsung - so I want to try a WP8 device now too.
And I like the HTC's more than the Nokia's now.
However - I buy all my phones at full price - no contracts - so now I just need to see what they want to charge for these WP8 phones...
Kind of annoying that anything related wi Win8 or WP8 has no prices attached to it...

"Thats because the iPhone 5 comes with Apples new Maps program, which is borderline unusable, and these sorry lemmings would never have even found the local Apple Store."
Never miss a chance to insult millions of people.
"Swiss Federal Railways Learns the Hard Way that Apple has Never had an Original iDea"
You know, you have a point to make here, but the bile rising in your throat caused you to state it in a way that utterly destroys anything resembling credibility.
"Ive often argued that Apple is all about form over function, but Maps brings this silliness to a new, stupefying level. At least youll have something pretty to look at when you walk around, hopelessly lost. Which, when you think about it, is exactly how many iPhone users appear to others already."
Yes, yes, we all know. "iDud" was just a pretty bauble, nothing useful. ALL the iPhones have been overrated toys that no one could possibly want......except for the millions who do.
Of course, the maps issues, while annoying, are nowhere near what Paul is spewing. One thing we know is that HE HASN'T USED IT! This is the clueless blogosphere echo chamber that he so derides when it suits him. Ah, well, another day of Paul's Apple hatred overcoming any remnant of good sense.
This all reads more and more like a bitter D-list blogger who's seeing his chosen niche spiraling into irrelevance. Of course, this irrationality and vile writing style -hastens- that demise, but there's no telling him that.
Bitter, party of one....

@Sybil - My last post stated:
"... but I am noticing issues with Bluetooth. It doesn't seem to stay connected to my car system very reliably. I never had issues before. I know that Apple added MAP to the BT stack and I know my car is supposed to be able to use it, but that isn't working either."
Your response appeared to be directed at that. My guess is that you got caught in error and are too small and pety to admit it. But life goes on - we all know your technical prowess!

Ah. You're back.
And on form.
You'll notice in my post that I referred to 'Maps' as 'Maps' and not MAP as is correct in that I was referring to the Maps App that there has been some controversy over.
True to form, you have again inappropriately jumped in to pompously point out what you perceive to be your superior knowledge.
More proof for everyone here to see of your overbearing self-importance.
Welcome back.

Mobile phones suffer water damage "mostly from people dropping their phones in a toilet.". Pissed myself laughing over that. Were they using it or did it just fall out of a pocket ? Whats next ? A waterproof version so you can talk in the shower. Do people really need to be that much in touch ?

Regarding Maps - the basic mapping seems to work fine for me. The turn by turn navigation leaves a lot to be desired. I see a lot of chatter on other sites comparing the new Maps to Siri, people saying it is a first version and to give Apple time. Waze is free and works better now.

Aw. Seems like the world of hurt some people are in is getting to be too much.
Name calling perhaps offers some respite.
The problem is, it doesn't change anything.
Apple continues to be the biggest company in the world, the iPhone 5 is an unparalleled success.
Meanwhile, Microsoft continue to become increasingly irrelevant and Windows Phone is a disaster.
It doesn't look too good for Windows 8 RT (or whatever it's called) either.
Must be so frustrating.

Paul, Paul, Paul....like chuckb84 said - there are points to be made with some of what you wrote about today...but attacks on users of specific platforms are as bad the irrational blind brand loyalty shown by our identity challenged friend that posts regularly here.

I went to check out the clock on my company-issued iPhone to see what all the fuss was about. I was greeted with a change password screen for my work email. After a few failed attempts to set the password I thought I'd skip it so I could see the clock. My POS iPhone wouldn't let me do anything else on the phone unless I changed the mail password. Pushing the big button on this thing did nothing. I had to shut it down and turn it back on. "It just works" my ass...
Now I understand nothing works perfectly. The problem is that Apple and its fans want you to believe that they ARE perfect and better than all others. "If you don't have an iphone, well, you don't have an iphone." It is nauseating. If they were a little more humble they wouldn't bother me.

There are so many great new phones/software coming out right now...
And RIM is still waiting until next year to release...
Would think RIM would at least leak a little info.... anything....
Although I don't think there is anything they 'could' announce right now that would keep people from buying any of the new offerings now and the next few months.

Can we start a bet on his spin on the Surface and Win RT pricing?
I say he will justify the price because it has Office and that alone makes it worth every penny more than the iPad.
Lets see whos prediction wins.

Reel, reel, reel! I caught a big one this time!
(Who said something about taking this site too serious)
(Secondly, who was it that once said pointing out spelling errors [purposely or otherwise] is an admission of a lost argument?)
Once again, easy to reel you in! Very easy.

Chuck dont go crazy pointing out the obvious. We all go to the Verge and daring fireball for more substance and opinion done right.
We come here like people who read the Enquire or visit TMZ....Just to screw around....
I dont think the 8 screen names and 6 people who comment here every week take his words serious.
Its entreatment to see his spin on things.
Does Paul really have credibility ?
Cant wait for the Surface Prices to come out Thats just going to be the best

I may be alone in thinking this, or I may not be; but to me Apple is rushing things to market lately. Turn by turn is one example, as is Passbook. I can't get it to open the App Store to download any passes. Sure, I could change the date to 2013 as seems to work for many in results online searches on the subject. But, that goes against Apple's "It just works" mantra. That is just two things in iOS 6 that I feel we're rushed. There may be others that I haven't seen yet. That is not like Steve Jobs' Apple. I hope they can improve on that and regain what seems to be happening.

Unsurprisingly Paul jumps all over Apple's new Maps App, without saying that he's even tried it.
Been using it on my iPhone today without any problems. Yes it's different and turn by turn navigation is great.
Will I miss the old version? I doubt it.
Does the new version need work? Undoubtedly.
Barely usable? Very far from it.
But hey. Lets not let a few facts spoil the chance for an unbiased analyst to take another snipe at Apple.
After all, Windows Phone will NEVER see sales of the magnitude Apple ate enjoying.

I am not quite sure what the problem is with the TomTom maps that Apple presents in iOS 5. This is version 1. Apple has proven over and over that they will release consistent upgrades in a timely fashion.
That's far from true in the Google and Windows phone sphere. It's a flip of a coin if your phone will be upgraded or not.
In my tests in my city Maps worked as expected.

Just to show the difference between Paul and a competent industry observer and blogger (John Gruber), here's Paul:
"Swiss Federal Railways Learns the Hard Way that Apple Has Never had an Original iDea"
Here's Gruber, the "Apple fanboy",
Swiss Federal Railways Says Apple Copied Its Iconic Railway Clock
"Whats good for the goose is good for the gander. Apple needs to cough up a licensing fee here."

Well, now Passbook seems to be working as it should, but I am noticing issues with Bluetooth. It doesn't seem to stay connected to my car system very reliably. I never had issues before. I know that Apple added MAP to the BT stack and I know my car is supposed to be able to use it, but that isn't working either. But then, I don't think that it is working well in any cars or on any phones.
I do like the "Do Not Disturb" feature. Panorama on the camera is pretty cool, too.

Okay.
Whoever is using --tayme's account on here, please stop.
It's just not the same without the usual pompous attitude, badly placed opportunistic jibes, name-calling, platform agnostic flag-waving and typos.
If this goes on, it'll ruin the fun.

@chuck-
You did not disprove what I said about the (now) four of them. Additionally, I'm also a liberal and find myself agreeing with Rachel more than Bill. However, I know better than to look to any of the four of them for more than some entertainment interspersed with some news, and to question everything they say. Trusting idealogues of any variety is never good, regardless of who you agree with.

--tayme:
My post was not directed at you. I was commenting on my experience with Bluetooth and Maps.
Again, you were too eager to jump in and have a go.
Your only way out is to claim that I was 'caught in error'.
Sorry. But no.
Are you like this in meetings? If so, it would go some way to explain why you're still stuck in a cubicle on your server farm.
Perhaps it might benefit you to not pompously assume that you know better than other people all the time. It might help to pause and think before you dive in and make a complete Ass of yourself.
Again
Now. Lets see who's small and petty enough to not admit he was wrong.
'Petty' has two 't's by the way. And no. That little bit of irony is not lost on me.

"It's like comparing Rachel Maddow with Bill O'Reilly. They're both pretentious opinionated egotistical blowhards, and saying one is better than the other isn't saying much about either."
False equivalence. Bill O'Reilly is bullying, blustering idiot who wouldn't know a fact if it bit him on the nose. Rachel Maddow is a Rhodes scholar who's also a liberal. BIG Difference. Again, you may not -agree- with Maddow or Gruber, but they are, respectively, so much better than O'Reilly and Thurrott.
(BTW, I am looking forward to the O'Reilly/Stewart "debate" :) )